Apparatus for feeding rod-shaped articles onto dipping plates



March 14, 1944. -rz 2,344,087 APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ROD-SHAPED ARTICLES ONTO DIPPING PLATES Filed Jan. 28, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 A. HETZ 2,344,087

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ROD-SHAPED ARTICLES ONTO DIPPING PLATES March 14, 1944.

Filed Jan. 28, 1941 :5 Sheets-Sheet 2 IO-ollbooono 0000000000.. 000003000... 00000000000. 00. I00

March 14, 1944. A, HETZ- 2,344,087

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ROD-SHAPED ARTICLES ONTO DIPPING PLATES I Filed Jan. 28, 1941 :s SheetsSheet s In uenzor:

Patented Mar. 14, 1944 APPARATUS FOR FEEDING ROD-SHAPED ARTICLES .ONTO DIPPINZG. PLATES Alfred H z Stein, near Nurember Ge m ny ted n the Alienrro rty Custod an Application January 28, 19.41, Serial No. 376,394 In many June. 8,13

' Claims.

This invention relates to apparatus for supplying dipping plates. with rod-shaped elements such as pencils.

Automatic apparatus have already become known which serve for putting on dipping plates, stylus, or other rod-shaped articles. The dipping plates after the articles have been put on are fed to a device which dips the articles perpendicularly more. or less deeply into a corroding, colouring, varnishing bath or the like. The apparatus known for this purpose possess, the inconvenience, that. they operate very slowly, and only a single row of the dipping plate, can be equipped with rod-shaped articles. The dipping, plate must then be shifted by the distance between two rows, in order that the next row can. be equipped with articles. The cost of pro: duction of the apparatus is thereby. considerably increased and its efiiciency is very low.

The present invention has for its object, to consider-ably accelerate the putting of rod shapfid articles onto dipping plates. This problem is solved in that the articles are, put on simultaneously in several vertical and horizontal rows, so that the whole dipping plate can be charged in one operation. The articles are first placed in a hopper and then fed to the dipping plate with the aid of mandrels and a guide plate, in several vertical and horizontal rows. The mandrels are mounted on a reciprocating carriage. It is especially advisable, to arrange feeding funnel, mandrels and guide plates in double, so. that at each movement in the one or other direction of the carriage carrying themandrels a dipping plate is equipped with articles.

Guide walls arearranged in the feeding hopper, the distances between said guide walls corresponding to the diameter of the rod-shaped articles. By these Walls the articles are-first arranged in vertical rows, the distance'between said rows corresponding to the horizontal spacing or the sleeves in the clipping plates. The selection from the vertical rows: of the pencils is efiected by the mandrels, which are spaced the one from theother at a distance which corresponds to at least double the diameter of the pencils or to a multiple of thesame. At these points holes are provided in the wallof. the feedns hopp rs fac n the i pin pla s at istances apart corresponding to the distance between the mandrels. Also the wall of this hopper facing the carriage has corresponding apertures. In order to insert the pencils into the vertical rows, the feeding hopper is subdivided and its upper part carries out an oscillating movement. In this upper part oscillating distribution plates, are further; suspended.

The intermediate walls in the hopper may have oblique indentations into which the rodshaped articles slip so th t they are spaced the one from the other at the same distance as the sleeves, in the dipping plate.

The guide plate arran ed, behind the feeding; hopper on the side facin the dipping plate has a, funnel-shaped inlet for each pencil and a round outlet, which again corresponds to the distance between the sleeves in the dipping plates.

The guide plate is connected by means ofa catch device with the carriage carrying the mandrels. The guide plate is drawn along by acatchrpawl to, a position in front of the dipping plate to be equipped with pencils, and then securely held, while the mandrels still carry out an additional movement and thereby securely stick the pencils into the clipping plate. On the catch-part for the guide plate mounted on the carriage a stop is provided, which at the extreme end of the movement of the mandrels releases; the locking for the guide plate, so that this, plate is returned to its initial position under the action of a pull spring. On the clipping plates the means for holding the pencils is constructed preferably sleeve-like, and the dipping plates are. moved to a i i nn r n of the guide plate from the side ofthe machine.

embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way of example in' the accompanying drawng i whi h 1 shows the machine in side elevation, the carriage being in the, middle. Position,

Fig. 2 is a similar View as Fig. l theguide plate b i ushed f rwa d.

3 is atop plan, view of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a section on line IV-.-IV of Fig. 1,

Fig. 5 is a section through the feeding-hopper on line V .V; of- Fig. 2;,

Fig. 6 shows an other form of construction oi the innerspace of the feeding hopper,

Fig. 7 shows the guide piece in elevation viewed from the side at which the feeding hopper is provided;

Fig. 8 shows the guide piece in elevation viewed from the side at which'the dipping plates are arranged,

Fig. 9 is a section on line IX IX of Fig. 8,

Fig. 10 shows a dipping plate in side elevation,

Fig. 11 is a part section through a dipping plate.

In the figures of the drawings designates the base plate of the machine, in which plate a hydraulic drive 2 for a carriage 3 is accommodated, said carriage carrying on either side mandrels 4. On the base plate I vertical guide bars '5 are mounted, in which dipping plates 6 slide. On the base plate I two-ieeding hoppers I are further arranged which consist each of a stationary part 8 and an oscillatably arranged part 9, the latter part being oscillated for instance by means of a crank drive driven by a motor In.

In the lower part 8 of each hopper guide plates or partitions |2 are arranged, the intervals l3 between said guide plates corresponding to the thickness of the articles, for instance of the pencils 4. The Wall of the hopper facing the dipping plates has holes I 5, the distance between said holes amounting to a multiple, at least to double the diameter of the articles. Th wall of the hopper'facing the carriage 3 is also provided with apertures aligned with the holes I and the mandrels 4 so that the mandrels may pass through the apertures to engage the rodshaped articles I4 and push the articles through the hole l5.

In the hoppers oscillatable plates l6 are further arranged, which are mounted in slits I! of the movable part 9 of the hopper and ensure a uniform distribution of the rod-shaped articles in the hopper.

The partitions l2 may have obliquely directed grooves 8, as shown in Fig. 6, into which the pencils slip, so that they are aligned with the holes IS.

The feeding plates 2| are slidably supported by means of bars H] which are slidable in guide pieces 20 on either side of the stationary hopper part 8. These feeding plates 2| are pressed by springs 22 against the corresponding hopper part 8. Catching bars 23 are further provided on the carriage 3 and have on their outer ends pawls 24 adapted to engage into the notches 25 in the bars I9 when the carriage is moved, and to thereby carry along the bars l9 and the guide plates 2|. This catching movement lasts until locking pawls 26 mounted on the hopper part 8 engage into notches 21 in the lower side of the bars IS. The catch pawls 24 are at the same time lifted out of the notches 25 when rollers 35 of the catch pawls 24 run up on control faces 28 of the guide members 20, so that the guide plates 2| are securely held in this position, as shown in Fig, 2. When the movement of the carriage continues, only the mandrels 4 with the pencils pushed from the hopper by the mandrels are then conducted in the direction to the dipping plates 6, until stops 29 fixed on the catch-bars 23 release the locking pawls 26. By the actionof spring 22 the corre- In operation of the apparatus the rod-shaped articles to be inserted in the openings of the sleeves 33 in the dipping plates 6 are first intro duced into the upper part 9 of the hopper 1 so that the rod-shaped elements are arranged substantially parallel to the mandrel 4. Operation of the motor In will cause the upper part 9 of each hopper to be vibrated so that the rod-shaped articles move into the spaces l3 between the partitions I2 whereb the rod-shaped articles are arranged parallel and some of the rod-shaped articles are aligned with the openings |5.

Thereafter the carriage 3 is moved towards one of the hoppers and the mandrels 4 pass through the apertures in the wall of the hopper part 8 facing the carriage 3. The rod-shaped articles are thereby pushed through the openings l5 in the opposite wall of the hopper by the mandrels 4. The rod-shaped articles are thus projected into the funnel-shaped opening in the guide plate 2| and the articles project through the openings 32.

Further movement of the carriage 3 in the same direction will cause the pawls 24 to engage the bars l9 within the notches 25 and the bars l9 and the guide plate 2| will thus be moved towards the dipping plates 6. During this movement the rod-shaped articles are further moved from the hopper by the mandrels 4. The guide plate 2| thus supports the outer ends of the rodshaped articles in horizontal positions in alignment with the openings l5.

When the carriage 3 reaches the position shown in Fig. 2 the bars l9 and the guide plates 2| are retained in this position by means of the pawls 26 which engage the bars l9 within the notches 21. Any suitable means for moving the pawl into this position may be employed such as a spring. At the same time the rollers 35 engage the inclined guide surfaces 28 and raise the pawls 24 from the notches 25 in the bars l9. During further movement of the carriage 3 the mandrels 4 push the rod-shaped article completely out of the hopper part 8 and move the rod-shaped artisponding guide plate 2| is then returned to its position of-rest shownin Fig. 1'.'

The guide plates 2| have oblong holes 30 on the side at which the pencils are inserted, said holes merging into funnel-shaped apertures 3| and into circular front openings 32.

The dipping plates have a resilient sleeve 33, in each opening therein as shown in Fig. 10, and these dipping plates 6 are moved in the guide bars 5 to the position'in which the openings in sleeves 33 are aligned with openings l5 in the hopper and aligned with the openings 32 in the guide plates 2|. The dipping plates may be fed to the position for receiving the pencils eithermechanically or by hand.

It is advisable to pile up the dipping plates under tension for instance of springs 34.

cles into the openings in the resilient sleeves 33 in the dipping plate. During such ejection of the rod-shaped articles the plate 2| guides the articles into the openings in the dipping plate.

' During the final movement of the carriage 3 towards the dipping plate 6 the stop members 29 engage the pawls 26 to release the bars l9. Thus when the carriage 3 is returned to its initial position the guide plate 2| is also returned to a position adjacent the hopper by action of the springs 22. During the return movement of the guide plate 2| the rod-shaped articles H are held in the dipping plate by the resilient action of the sleeves 33. The openings in the guide plate 2| are of such a diameter that no appreciable frictional resistance is encountered by relative movement between the guide plate 2| and the rod-shaped articles. Thus the guide plate 2| is free to return to its initial position without withdrawing the rod-shaped articles from the clipping 7 plate.

The carriage 3' may also be moved in an opposite direction to push rod-shaped articles from the other hopper into the openings of the guide plate 6 at the corresponding end of the apparatus.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for feeding rod-shaped articles into openings in a dipping plate comprising, a hopper for receiving the'rod-shaped articles and having openings in opposite walls thereof, a D 1- rality of mandrels mounted for movement through said openings, and a plate having openings therethrough for uiding the rod-shaped articles from the hopper into openings in the dipping plate.

2. Apparatus for feeding rod-shaped articles into horizontal and vertical rows in a dipping plate comprising, a hopper for receiving the rodshaped articles, opposite walls of said hopper having horizontal and vertical rows of openings corresponding to the openings in the clipping plates, and mandrels arranged for movement through the openings in the hopper for pushing the rodshaped articles therefrom into the openings in the dipping plate.

3. Apparatus for feeding rod-shaped articles into horizontal and vertical rows in a dipping plate comprising, a hopper for receiving the rodshaped articles, opposite Walls of said hopper having horizontal and vertical rows of openings corresponding to the openings in the dipping plate, a guide plate arranged between the hopper and the dipping plate and having openings therein aligned with the openings in said hopper, means supporting said guide plate for movement towards the clipping plate, mandrels aligned with the openings in said hopper, means for moving the mandrels through the openings in the hopper to push the rod-shaped elements therefrom into the openings in said guide plate, and means for moving said guide plate toward the dipping plate and the rod-shaped elements into the openings in the dipping plate.

4. Apparatus for feeding rod-shaped articles into openings in a clipping plate comprising, a hopper for receiving the rod-shaped articles, said hopper having openings therein aligned with the openings in the dipping plate, means for guiding said rod-shaped articles to parallel positions within the hopper aligned with the openings thereof, and mandrels aligned with the openings in the hopper for pushing the rod-shaped articles therefrom into the openings in the dipping plate.-

5. Apparatus for feeding rod-shaped articles into openings in a dipping plate comprising, a hopper for receiving a supply of rod-shaped articles, said hopper having openings in opposite walls thereof aligned with the openings in said dipping plate, a guide plate between the hopper and the clipping plate, said guide plate having funnel-shaped openings with the wider portions thereof facing said hopper, mandrels aligned with the openings in said hopper, and means for moving the mandrels through the openings in one wall of the hopper to push the rod-shaped articues from the hopper into the funnel-shaped openings in the guide plate and into the openings in the dipping plate.

ALFRED HETZ. 

